This Peoria mother is issuing a warning after her teen's life-changing fireworks injury

PEORIA — Be careful and listen to your parents.

That's the mantra from a South Peoria woman who doesn't want anyone to go down her 13-year-old son's path this Independence Day weekend.

He was seriously injured this year during a fireworks accident, which caused him to lose several fingers and also damaged his hearing. Now, he's undergoing physical therapy to learn how to use his right hand again.

"If you have kids and they want to play with fireworks, then be there. Monitor them and supervise them. Make sure you know what they are playing with," Sarah Taylor-Renfro said.

It was March 13 and son Percy was hanging out with his cousins. They were in a parking lot in South Peoria when they decided to light off some fireworks. 

In an interview, he said he doesn't remember what kind it was — only recalling that it had a "stick." He tried to set it off, and it didn't blow.

"I then went to go throw it and it went off in my face," he said. "I remember seeing a flash and then I was standing up. I then sat down and told someone to go and get help."

His mother was at their home on South Garden Street when the call came. 

"I got a phone call saying that I needed to get to the hospital, that my son had been injured in an fireworks accident," Taylor-Renfro said.

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When she arrived, her son was missing four fingers and part of his thumb on his right hand. His face and chest suffered burns and his eardrums were ruptured. 

"I was like, ‘oh man, wow. How?' Everything was just gone. I had just watched my son play basketball. Why was this happening?" Taylor-Renfro said. "We never question God, so there is a greater motive behind this. There has to be a greater motive." 

How prevalent are fireworks injuries?

Neither OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center nor UnityPoint Health-Methodist track fireworks injuries specifically at their facilities, but officials there referred to a yearly report from the State Fire Marshal's Office, which tracks them statewide.

Last year, 89 hospitals and facilities statewide reported a total of 163 injuries and no fatalities. In 2019, there were 126 injuries — but only 56 hospitals provided data to the state database.

In 2020, more than half the injuries, 59%, were to people over 22. Children in the 11 to 16 age group almost doubled to 23% in 2020 from 2019's 12%, according to the state report.

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As they do each year, Peoria police issued a set of warnings for people on how to safely use fireworks as well as what explosives are legal within the city limits. Among the safety precautions are: 

• Choose a level surface free of grass, weeds, or other combustible material for at least ten feet in all directions.
• Keep children and pets out of this discharge area, only responsible adults should handle or light fireworks.
• Always keep a hose or bucket of water nearby.

Recovery from fireworks injuries is not an easy task

This week, Percy again went for physical therapy because he has to relearn how to perform some tasks that he didn't give any thought to before. The teen tried a half dozen times to pick up a small tube until he was able to grip it with his injured hand.

Some tasks are more difficult. Buttons are a chore, putting weight on his right hand is painful, and when a physical therapist gave his hand an ultrasound massage, Percy couldn't really feel it.

But the teen's cleverness has remained. When a physical therapist put a sticky bandage around his hand to help his grip, Percy said he had done the same thing at home — taping his hand to a controller so he could play video games.

His mother said they are in the process of getting fitted for a prosthetic for his hand. She wanted her son's story to be a cautionary tale for others out there. 

"I don't want to take fun away from people or enjoyment from people, but be aware of what you have," Taylor-Renfro said, referring to the explosives. "Be aware of it and the kids, listen to the adults. When they say something, you need to listen to them because you aren't indestructible."

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As for her son, their faith in God and their belief that things happen for a reason will get them through, she said. 

"It's been a rough road, but day to day, we'll take care of it. We'll handle things and just move on from here."